Joining a legacy that spans 120 years, 34 members of the Class of 2026 were formally inducted into the MICDS Chapter of the Cum Laude Society this week.
Founded in 1906, the Cum Laude Society is dedicated to honoring scholastic achievement in secondary schools. The founders of the society modeled Cum Laude after Phi Beta Kappa, and since its founding, Cum Laude has grown to 382 chapters.
The motto of the Society is Areté, Diké, Timé – Excellence, Justice, Honor. Areté represents moving beyond simple scholarship to embrace moral excellence, Diké means practicing what is suitable, appropriate, and just, and Timé upholds the concepts of dignity and truth.
The MICDS Chapter of the Cum Laude Society is comprised of the top 20% of the senior class. Each inductee must demonstrate that they have pursued academic rigor by completing three or more Advanced Placement® courses, having no grade lower than a C, and being free of disciplinary and honor infractions. As part of the induction process, each candidate shared one of their Common App essays for review by the Cum Laude faculty members. The faculty selected seven essays that were shared at a special breakfast held earlier this month for the student candidates.
The students selected Cade-Michael Miller ’26 and Nihaal Satwani ’26 to share their essays with the Upper School student body during the ceremony.
The following individuals from the Class of 2026 were selected for membership into the MICDS Chapter of the Cum Laude Society:
Aiyla Ahmad ’26
Emma Allen ’26
Bella Anadkat ’26
Max Bierman ’26
Harper Carnahan ’26
Ava Casillas ’26
Isabelle Cox-Garleanu ’26
Alexa Davis ’26
Harrison Foster ’26
Avery Henriksen ’26
Olivia Hill ’26
Claire Hofer ’26
Sean Hogan ’26
Gigi Koster ’26
Alexa Kummant ’26
Georgia Lochhead ’26
Morgan Macam ’26
Dunnen McGaughey ’26
Cade-Michael Miller ’26
Laurion Nicholson ’26
Taylor Nuzum ’26
Evita Okohson-Reb ’26
Siboney Oviedo-Gray ’26
Shil Penilla ’26
Narya Phatak ’26
Rose Sabalvaro ’26
Nihaal Satwani ’26
Clyde Siow ’26
Celia Swiston ’26
Hannah Wang ’26
Isabelle Williams ’26
Ian Zar ’26
Yusuf Zayed ’26
Andy Zheng ’26
Congratulations to the newest inductees of the MICDS Chapter of the Cum Laude Society!